Big Rock Finish… reviews of independent music

So the “post Chrstmas, pre-new-years” show for Strange Noises and Kismet (mostly known as S.N.A.K.) (www.snakbiz.com) was on December 29th 2006 at Smiling Buddha Bar. Smiling Buddha is, in my opinion, becoming known as the little rock bar in Toronto. I’ve known so many bands to play there, and have been to a large number of shows in a very short amount of time. I think they’ll host just about anyone, and it’s a very wide and varying collection of artists who will play there. It’s small, and pretty out of the way at I think it’s College and Dovercort in Toronto, complete with liberal use of a smoke machine.

The band starts off this show (as with every show) with a round of shots. Oh tradition… And started the set. I know them as playing lots of fun upbeat rock songs, and would justify myself in calling themselves pop. Not extremely pop, just slightly pop, since the songs are so fun, and often silly in their lyrical content.

About the third song, during their self-described “dance number” something decided to blow out. Leaving all of the mics, and most of the guitars and the bass silent through the sound system. Being a band to not give up, the drummer, Ian, and “Wee One” Alex on guitar, continued the now infamous “extended drum solo” version of their song “Magnificent Twist” until the sound tech was able to turn everything back on. Definite fun times.

Sound problems did not cease however. The music once again cut out at another song, and while baffled, Tynur, the lead singer decides to finish the song by shouting at the crowd without the added comfort of a microphone. Again the sound tech is puzzled. Seeing as how the microphones are not on by the end of that song, Tynur then decides that it’s high time for another sing-along, and SNAK plays a cover for everyone to sing to.

The sound problem ended up being equipment from the bar, something they had kept shorting out half of everything on stage. To work around this issue, they decided to turn the monitors around to face the audience for vocals, and that would stop shorting out the circuit. Of course, that meant the band were now flying pretty blind as to who was singing what since they can’t hear anything on stage.

The show finished, lots of giggles ensued because of the problems, but I would still consider the show a success. The show was fun, silly, unexpected, and upbeat. Just like SNAK.

One of many jemo (www.jemo.net / www.jemounofficial.com) shows that I have gone to in the past year, without exception this was a great show.  Ciao Edie Roxx is a small little place just off of College and Bathurst in downtown Toronto.  Has an oddly shaped room, stage, and a smoke machine, caters to what I would classify as a more up-scale, pay $10+ for a martini (I’m taking a wild guess at price here) where people would venture to after work.

The set was great.  jemo as always sounded very tight, well put together, and had lots of fun.  Songs that I recognized I have no problem singing along to, and new songs are always great to hear and remember for when they are finally recorded and released.

They also played a new (to them) R&B cover this night, “Crazy” By Gnarls Barkley.  Which was surprising and really good.  I’d only heard the song a few times (even though it was a top song very recently) and the way jemo interpreted it, and changed it around just enough to fit their style of music, was truly inspirational.

Not much else to say other than it was a great set.

jemo’s next show is January 25th, 2007 at Lee’s Palace in Toronto.